Piece Me Back Together
by Ivoryrain
Summary: When Kagome sees Inuyasha and Kikyo together, who will comfort her and eventually soothe her broken heart? The ever loveable Sesshomaru of course! Warning: SessxKag & slight InuxKik. Also MiroxSang. Bad beginning, but it improves.
1. Chapter 1: Betrayed

**I don't usually write off-pairing fics (fics with pairings other than the shows imply), but I had an idea for a SesshomaruxKagome fic late at night (like 2 am) and it wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote a summary and resolved to work on it. Also, sorry for not updating my other fic, Growing Up. My home computer had the first part of the next chapter and it crashed or something messed up happened. I'm writing this on my laptop and then I'll try to post it on my dad's laptop that has wireless Internet access. Also I'm deeply sorry for InuxKikyo pairing. I hate that bitch as much as any other fan. When she comes onscreen during the credits, I shout, "Die bitch!" at the top of my lungs. So that pairing kills me inside too, if it's any consolation. Another note, the beginning is kind of bad since my heart isn't into the InuyxKik thing. I can like the SessxKag if it's well written.**

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"Oh, Kikyo!" Inuyasha said. He pulled her in closer. 

Kagome was watching. Inuyasha and Kikyo were making out! And it looked like things might go farther than that! Kagome felt sick.

After Kikyo had purified Naraku and the Jewel of Four Souls, the Shikon no Tama, she had continued to wander the earth until she could have Inuyasha. Kagome knew that she had promised to stay by Inuyasha's side, but if he would be doing this kind of stuff with Kikyo, she didn't think her heart could stand that much pain and remain intact.

Thinking that she might actually throw up if she saw anymore, Kagome ran through the trees. She crashed through the underbrush, getting all sorts of nasty scrapes and cuts, but she didn't care. Kagome continued to run until she reached a river. There, she sat on a boulder, put her head in her hands and sobbed so hard that it hurt.

Kagome might have screamed once or twice out of anger, pain, or frustration, but she couldn't be sure. She felt a small hand rubbing her back comfortingly. Kagome was sure that Shippo had come when he had heard her scream, if she had.

She looked up, expecting to see Shippo, but instead seeing a small girl looking concerned. It looked like that girl that always hung around Sesshomaru, Inuyasha's older brother.

"Are you okay Miss…um, I can't recall your name." the girl said.

"My name's Kagome. And you're Rin, right?" Kagome asked wearily. All that sorrow had drained her energy. She sniffed kind of pitifully a couple of times and wiped her eyes on her sleeve.

"What happened to you girl?" a disinterested voice behind her asked.

Startled, Kagome whirled around to see Sesshomaru looking at her with his usual expressionless face. Kagome wasn't sure if it was because he asked, or because he was standing there with nothing better to do, or if it had to do with the fact that her heart had been ripped and smashed into microscopic pieces, but she found herself telling him everything.

"Inuyasha had said that he had chosen Kikyo over me, which I managed to handle. That was until I saw him with Kikyo doing…" Kagome's voice failed her. She didn't think she could bring herself to voice her suspicions about what they were about to do when she had bailed. "So I ran here, and I just won't be able to face him anymore. Not without having a total breakdown everytime I see him. So I can't travel with my friends anymore, and that's all there is for me in this world."

Sesshomaru didn't know about her coming from the future. He thought she was talking about killing herself. 'How pathetic. She can't see my foolish half-brother, so she can't even find the will to live. He's so pitiful. He picks his love who is dead and made of clay and bones, leaving his love who is warm and breathing and made of flesh and blood to mourn the loss of him. How is it that they both still love him when his is obviously not very loyal to either of them? There must be something…special about them. They are very loyal despite the fact that he is not. Hmmm.'

While Sesshomaru was musing, Kagome thought of something. 'Hey, wait, what's wrong with this picture?'

"Why do you care anyway?" she asked him suddenly, making him pay attention to her again.

"Don't be more stupid than you already are. I don't care." Sesshomaru, but his tone wasn't convincing Kagome.

"You don't sound like you don't care. So you do care?" she asked looking puzzled.

Sesshomaru replied by shooting her a look that said he hoped she'd be quiet on her own, to save him the trouble of ripping out her vocal chords.

Rin, who had been listening and watching them the whole time, whispered to Kagome, "That's his 'it's quiet time' face."

Despite her sadness, Kagome laughed while Rin tried to hide her giggles. Sesshomaru, who had been about to turn away and call Rin to follow, paused. That girl's laugh. It did strange things to his stomach that he was not familiar with. He glanced over his shoulder and saw the expression on Rin's face as she laughed with Kagome. They were becoming hysterical, which annoyed him, but he saw that Rin was beaming.

'No, that's a crazy thought…but it would be for Rin.' he thought, mentally arguing with himself.

He decided to say something before he could back out. "Kagome, would you like to come with me and Rin?"

"**_What!_**" Kagome asks, her eyes popping.

"If you think you are above traveling with me, you are sadly mistak-" Sesshomaru began, but Kagome cut him off.

"No, it's not that! It's just…Okay. Number one, you used my name, which I wasn't really sure if you knew, remembered, or cared about. Number two, you, if I accept, you the oh-so high and mighty Sesshomaru will have not one, but _two_ human traveling companions." Kagome pointed out for him.

At this, Sesshomaru pulled her none too gently away from Rin and said in a quiet voice so only Kagome could hear, "Maybe. But I think that Rin could use a female presence in her life, like a mentor or mother of sorts. I've seen the way you treat that orphaned fox cub, as if he was your own young. That proves that your maternal instincts are very good."

Kagome looks stunned. "You know that makes sense. Rin could use someone to take care of her…with a bit more care and love. I think I will come with you." Kagome decided, reaching out as if to touch him.

Sesshomaru made a growling noise. His eyes flashed red and he slashed at the air very close to her face.

Her eyes grew wide and afraid as she asked, "Was that reflex, or do you really want to kill me?" She had a feeling that she knew the answer, and she was very afraid of what he would say.

"Both." Sesshomaru replied irritably. "Understand right now that you are **_not_** to touch me, as I have not given you permission to do so."

"Okay, I understand. Sesshomaru, I need to grab my bag and say goodbye to my friends while Inuyasha is still 'busy'." Kagome told him bitterly.

"Fine, but you must meet us here in an hour, or…" Sesshomaru let the threat hang in the air.

"I'll be back. I promise." Kagome assured him. She turned to Rin, who was looking curious and confused, and said, "I have something to do, but then I can come back and we can play, alright?"

"Alright Lady Kagome." Rin said with a mock salute. Kagome smiled. She was forgetting about Inuyasha already.

Coincidentally, Inuyasha and Kikyo were in the bushes a while away. Inuyasha was close enough to hear Kagome's voice, and he tried to disentangle himself from Kikyo to find her and explain in case she had seen them together, but Kikyo fought back to reentangle them. In the end, Inuyasha didn't have the willpower to resist.

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Well, hopefully the first chapter wasn't too bad. I don't have the excuse that this is my first fic because I've had two Inuyasha fics finished that I won't post because they aren't so good, and three more fics started now, two of which are Inuyasha. So if it's bad, my only possible excuse is that I'm not used to writing these pairings. And that isn't a very good excuse. Well, I hoped you liked this enough to review and give your opinion and suggest ways that I can improve if you didn't like it (except pairings, I have a big plot idea, so the pairings are sadly set in stone. Maybe the InuxKik one might change, never know. That's high on my top ten list of hated pairings.).**


	2. Chapter 2: Saying Goodbye

**I've decided to keep going with the second chapter before I post the first. But it'll probably be up by the time this gets posted. Anyway, this should be an okay chapter, at least I'm hoping.**

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Kagome was finally back to the village and outside Kaede's hut. Now she felt nervous. How are you supposed to tell your friends that you've decided to go with a dangerous human slaughtering demon that is your enemy on a regular basis? Answer: With regret. 

Kagome really did wish she could stay. She loved her friends, and she had brought a camera to take pictures one day and she treasured those pictures and was thinking of making more mementos for her friends to keep. She had made one already, she was wearing it. But now she had to give it to someone.

She walked into the hut looking glum, and all her friends looked her way. "Kagome, you look so sad. Is everything okay?" Sango asked, looking concerned.

"No, it really isn't." Kagome said in a hollow sort of voice. "Something happened. I don't think I can stay here or ever see Inuyasha again. So someone offered to allow me to travel with them. He's strong, and I know I'll be safe under his protection. I'm so sorry." She was starting to cry again, and her tears had brought friends, so many that it felt like water was streaming down her face. It felt like her whole face was wet.

"Whoa, slow down Lady Kagome. Are you sure you want to do this? I mean, remember when you've had fights with Inuyasha before and things always worked out." Miroku reminded her.

"If this is what Inuyasha wants to do, I can never see his face again. He wants Kikyo, not me. I can't be by his side if he's _kissing_ Kikyo constantly." Kagome said. Her voice had that unnatural bitter tone that made her friends even more concerned.

"Oh, you saw them kissing again? Kagome that isn't bad enough to-" Sango started.

"Not just kissing. I think they were about to go farther. I think they were about to do things that Miroku thinks about. At least, that's how it looked to me." Kagome told her. She couldn't look Sango in the eye. She shuffled her feet and felt uncomfortable talking about that subject.

Sango, Miroku, and Shippo's eyes all widened disbelievingly. "Kagome, if he touched her butt and stuff, he can leave not you!" Shippo declared. Kagome vaguely recognized that he was a teeny bit too innocent to fully understand. It was probably better that way she realized.

"No, if all of us leave him, then nothing will tie him to this world and Kikyo will be free to take him to Hell with her. And I care too much about him to allow him to be sucked into Hell." Kagome told Shippo.

"If this is what you really want Lady Kagome, then we won't stop you. We'll stay with Inuyasha and protect him from Kikyo." Miroku assured her.

"I'll convince my new friend to bring me back every once in a while so I can visit. It might be hard, but I'll make him, I guarantee." Kagome promised.

Shippo launched himself at her, his eyes watery and sad. "But if you leave then…You mean you're going with _him_!" he asked, catching Sesshomaru's scent on her.

"Yes Shippo. I have my reasons. But…since you're partly what made him ask me, I could take you along. If you wanted to come that is." Kagome clarified.

"Of course! I can't live without you! You've been there ever since I lost my family. Now you're the heart of my family. I won't lose you." Shippo said very seriously. He never used the word "Mom" but Kagome was sure that was the point he was making.

"I'm glad you want to stay with me. I'm just sad that everyone can't. Sango, will you be okay alone with Miroku? I don't think Inuyasha will help prevent or stop his pervertedness." Kagome warned her.

"I'll be fine. He won't be a good boy, but he can have the crap beaten out of him instead." Sango said with a withering look at Miroku.

"Okay. I'll miss you so much Sango. And I might miss Miroku in some strange way." Kagome said. She hugged Sango and tried to stop crying.

"Goodbye Kagome. You're my best friend, besides Kilala. Best human friend then. I'll miss you a ton. Make sure that you visit soon and often. We can maybe set up a certain date sometime?" Sango asked hopefully. She was still in Kagome's arms, and she felt sad that she wouldn't see Kagome for a long time probably. Kagome let her go to pick up her bag, which she put on her back and picked up Shippo.

"I'll try. We had better leave before Inuyasha gets back." Kagome said. She walked outside and they followed her. "Tell Kaede I said goodbye!" she said, walking off and waving. Sango and Miroku waved back and then went inside Kaede's hut to wait for Inuyasha.

Kagome hurried to the river before Sesshomaru got impatient. "Do you think Sesshomaru will let me come?" Shippo asked her nervously.

"He'll have to. You're my kid, and I won't leave you behind. Oh! I just remembered, I have something for you!" Kagome said as she set him down. She reached up to her neck, which at one point held the Shikon no Tama, and pulled a necklace out from under her shirt.

"Ooh, ooh, let me see! I want to see!" Shippo said, jumping up and down trying to see what the necklace looked like.

Kagome pulled the necklace over her head and handed it to him. He looked at it and started knocking on the locket. Kagome laughed. She bent over and opened it for him. There were two small pictures that she had taken when she brought her camera to the feudal era. "That's me and you!" he said with surprise.

"Yes, that's our small family. And on the other side is our extended family. See there's Sango, Kilala, Miroku, and Inu-" Kagome cut off in the middle of her list.

"Um, should we go? We don't want Sesshomaru mad at us." Shippo suggested, pulling the locket over his head and closing it.

"Yeah." Kagome agreed, as she started to walk next to Shippo. "Oh, and Shippo? Don't touch Sesshomaru. He nearly sliced up my face when I tried. I don't want him to hurt you."

"Got it." Shippo said. They had reached the river where Sesshomaru was sitting idly on the boulder where Kagome had sat sobbing, while Rin waded in the shallow parts of the river.

"What took you so long? And what is he doing with you?" Sesshomaru asked.

"He's my family, and I won't go anywhere without him. And besides, Rin will want someone closer to her own age to play with, right?" Kagome sought for confirmation.

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes and looked irritated. "Very well. But he had better not cause any problems."

"He won't. Thank you Sesshomaru." Kagome said with a grateful smile. Again, Sesshomaru's stomach flipped over and fluttered around in his abdomen. What was doing this to him?

He had no time to dwell on it though. Rin shrieked as a wild current sucked her into the middle of the river. "Stay here, I can get her." Kagome said, dropping her bag and pulling off her shoes and socks and diving in.

She swam with the current and grabbed ahold of Rin. Then she swam to the bank, ending up a few meters away from where she started. Sesshomaru was hurrying towards Kagome and Rin, with a startled look on his face that Kagome guessed was his face for worried or afraid. Shippo was pulling her bag with her shoes and socks and following behind Sesshomaru at a considerably slower pace.

"Why did you do that?" Sesshomaru asked when he reached them.

"What do you mean? She obviously can't swim, and I wouldn't let her drown. And I can't picture _you_ diving in to save her, if you can swim." Kagome told him. She was soaked, and what was worse, she was wearing her sailor school uniform. The shirt was white, and that of course meant it was see through when wet. Her face started turning red when she saw Sesshomaru glance her way.

"I suppose you're right. If you and Rin are alright, we should continue on." Sesshomaru stated.

"Hold on, I'm soaking wet and it's almost dark! Can't we just make camp for the night? Please?" Kagome pleaded.

Sesshomaru made a growling noise. He was not used to being argued with. Rin yawned and her stomach protested the lack of food.

"See, we humans need food and rest or else we collapse. Rin is so skinny that her bones stick out. She hasn't been getting enough to eat! What have you been feeding her!" Kagome demanded to know.

"I don't feed her. She has to fend for herself." Sesshomaru stated simply.

Kagome's eyes went very wide and her mouth dropped open. "I think you need to know that she isn't a demon, and therefore, should not be raised as you would normally raise a demon child of your own. Human children aren't forced to 'fend for themselves' until they are much older. I'm surprised she hasn't dropped dead from starvation!" Kagome shouted, feeling like she was a social worker.

Sesshomaru wasn't sure what to say. No one so weak, pitiful, and insignificant had ever argued this much with him. He usually killed them the moment they had a complaint. But he didn't really want to kill her. He wasn't sure why, but she was arguing with him, winning at it, and he still had no real desire to rip her to shreds.

"Fine. We'll stay here for the night." Sesshomaru decided. Kagome calmed down a bit.

Kagome gave him another grateful smile but said nothing. She started to gather wood for a fire to dry off. 'Wait, I need to change. Oh, crap this is going to be _very_ awkward.'

"Sesshomaru, I kind of need to change into dry clothes. Could you turn your back? Not for too long, I'll hurry." Kagome assured him.

Sesshomaru looked taken aback, and slightly flustered. He did not reply, but turned away and watched the sky resolutely. Kagome took that as an okay. She pulled out her dry clothes and started to undress. Shippo didn't pay any attention since he was rooting around in her bag for a treat that he could share with Rin.

When he found some 'hard candies' as Kagome called them, and took one for himself and one for Rin. When he handed one to Rin she looked confused. That is, until Shippo popped his into his mouth. Then Rin just mimicked his action.

"Ooh!" Rin let out a squeal of delight and surprise at the taste of it.

Sesshomaru quickly turned to see what was wrong with Rin, but got an eyeful of Kagome, who was only in her underwear and bra. It was Kagome's turn to scream, and she let out a shriek of horror. Sesshomaru turned around, blushing. Maybe this was a very bad idea. Things didn't make sense or run smoothly with this girl. He could only hope that tomorrow would be less eventful than today.

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Well, second chapter is finished, and I haven't even posted the first one at the time that I'm finishing this. Damn computer. Oh well. I hope you liked this, and again, opinions and suggestions for improvement are welcome.**


	3. Chapter 3: Misunderstanding

**Well, third chapter is started seconds after I finish the first chapter. By the time my computer starts behaving, I'll probably have all three chapters done and ready to post for this new fic.**

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"Miroku, do you think she was really traveling with Koga?" Sango asked, tilting her head curiously. 

"Shippo did say, 'You mean you're going with _him_!' One could definitely surmise Koga was the 'him'. And Shippo knew very well that Inuyasha would have a hissy fit when he finds out." Miroku responded.

"Wow. Makes me wonder if Koga will be a gentleman with her…or a feral beast that takes what it wants. It's not in a wolf demon's nature to share. That's why Koga really hated Inuyasha, instead of just not liking him. But it is certainly in a wolf demon's nature to take what he wants by force." Sango said.

"So you worry for Lady Kagome's purity? I think that she'll be clever enough to stay him off. She always used to give him compliments to get him to leave when Inuyasha was injured. She'll probably have something up her sleeve to keep him away." Miroku told Sango with confidence.

"You're probably right. She'll be fine." Sango agreed, feeling reassured. "Poor Kagome though. To see Inuyasha and Kikyo starting to do…that! No wonder she looked like such a mess. It would be undoubtedly disturbing to watch the man you think of as your boyfriend doing…that with a dead woman."

"You don't like to use the term 'making love' do you?" Miroku asked with mild amusement.

Sango blushed and looked flustered. "Of course not! I'm not used to talking about this because I'm not as morally depraved as you are."

"Oh, my fair Lady Sango. That's why you are so endearing." Miroku told her. Sango face was very red. Shockingly, Miroku decided that he would keep it to mild teasing for once. The shade of red and the look on her face when she was embarrassed were much more attractive than the angry ones.

Sango wasn't sure what to say. She was waiting for Miroku to ruin the moment with his famous wandering hands. But the time was stretching without interruption.

Until Inuyasha came barging in, looking like he had been wrestling in the dirt with someone. Sango watched him coldly. "Where's Kagome? I need to talk with her."

"Lady Kagome has left. She said she saw you kissing Kikyo and she felt that it was about to escalate to something much more, so she left." Miroku informed him.

"What! I was only…making out with Kikyo. It can't go any farther than that. Both Kikyo and I agree that it's impossible." Inuyasha said, looking at the wall next to him out of embarrassment.

"Still, Kagome looked…broken. I think she finally had her heart torn. And you were the one to tear it!" Sango said with a cold note of accusation in her voice as she addressed Inuyasha.

Inuyasha looked very guilty, so Miroku had pity on him. "Sango, let's not be too harsh. Inuyasha may be an incredible idiot for not choosing Kagome, but we can't _make_ him want her more than he does Kikyo."

"I don't see why Kagome liked him so much in the first place. Inuyasha is always being an insensitive jerk." Sango said with disdain.

Inuyasha growled. "Well if Kagome went home, I'll go and explain things to her."

"Lady Kagome did not return to the future, but instead said that someone had offered to let her travel with them. It was apparently male, and Sango and myself think it was Koga. Shippo smelled someone on her and said, 'You mean you're going with _him_!' So we figured that Koga was the most logical answer." Miroku said sensibly.

Inuyasha looked livid. "No way am I going to just let him take Kagome!"

Sango found it satisfying that he was angry. "He didn't take her. She went willingly because of you. She said, 'I don't think I can stay here or ever see Inuyasha again.' So don't think you're blameless here."

Miroku thought that Inuyasha reminded him of a kicked puppy. "Sango, let's not kick the puppy any more. He's hurt enough."

"Well, Koga moved back into his old den after Naraku was defeated, right? So I'll just go there and bring her back." Inuyasha said stubbornly.

"I don't think it'll be that easy. Besides, we never actually saw his den. Kagome and Shippo were the only ones to actually see it, remember?" Miroku reminded him.

"Where is the runt? If you two are this angry, I would expect him to be trying to beat me up with those tiny little hands of his." Inuyasha said.

"Kagome took him with her of course. She's like his mother, and it wouldn't be like her to abandon Shippo." Sango told him.

"That traitor! I hope Koga eats him alive!" Inuyasha shouted angrily. "Even if I've never been there, we can just go to the area where we were when we were searching for him before. After that, the stink of wolves will lead us there."

Miroku and Sango sighed in unison. "I don't think we can convince him to not chase her, so we might as well go along and control the amount of damage he can do." Miroku told Sango with hopelessness ringing clearly in his voice.

"Very well then. But it think the damage has been done." Sango told Miroku.

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Short chapter, but what ya gonna do? I hope you like it so far. You are as always, encouraged to review. Not sure if there is anything more to be said.**


	4. Chapter 4: New Discoveries

**I can't access the Internet at the moment I'm writing this, so to the reviewer whose name escapes me: What about Inuyasha's parents? They were full demon and full human. And from that came Inuyasha, so where's the real bad? The prejudice of humans and demons against half demons strikes me as similar to racism. And who likes racists?**

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Sesshomaru had awoken early in the morning, as he always did, but he was surprised to find that Kagome was sitting up and looking around. She caught his eye and looked away, memories of the night before flooding through her mind. They hadn't spoken of it, and since Kagome couldn't 'Sit' him and was too afraid to slap him, he had gotten away with it. 

"Morning." she said in a quiet sleepy voice. The kitsune had slept with her in that strange bag of hers. Who wanted to sleep in a bag anyway? Too restrictive.

Sesshomaru said nothing but merely acknowledged her presence. He glanced around for Rin, and found her sleeping suprisingly close to himself. Maybe she was shy. The girl had been mute after all, at least until he brought her back to life.

Kagome was carefully climbing out of her bag and making her way towards him, careful not to wake the sleeping kit or girl. "Where are we going anyway?" she whispered anxiously.

"Here and there." Sesshomaru responded evasively.

Kagome looked suspiciously at him and asked, "What are we doing when we get 'there'?"

"This and that." he answered, not caring about her curious inquiries.

"Those aren't good answers you know." she told him.

"Why should I care?" he wondered in a bored voice.

Kagome looked disappointed. "I suppose you wouldn't, would you? So what am I supposed to do? Just take care of Rin and Shippo? Because if that's what the point is of having me along, then you'll have to cooperate. That girl has been driven like livestock for too long, I can tell. So you'll have to make some concessions. Humans can't go as fast as demons and can't go as far as demons. So there will need to be a slight slowing of pace. Especially if we're always walking to wherever we're going. We used to ride Kilala or he…" her voice faltered for a moment. "would carry me. But since neither of those are an option, I assume we'll walk."

"Are you done yet?" Sesshomaru asked uninterestedly.

Kagome looked pissed. "You aren't taking any of this seriously, are you! You don't really care about her, you just keep her along! You're worse than Inuyasha!"

Silence came after she said his name. It seemed like she was remembering things about Inuyasha, most likely his betrayal from the pained expression she was wearing. Sesshomaru looked irritated.

By now, Shippo and Rin had awakened. Kagome's shouts could have woke the dead, so the living were easily roused. "Are you okay?" Shippo asked, running to Kagome's rescue. He put himself between Kagome and Sesshomaru protectively, although Sesshomaru could smell the fear on him.

"I'm fine Shippo, I was just discussing things with Sesshomaru." Kagome assured him, feeling appreciative that he would try to defend her.

"Is that the kind of discussion you have with Inuyasha that end up with you 'Sitting' him?" Shippo asked curiously.

Kagome's face tightened at Inuyasha's name, but she hid it and told him, "Yes, that would be the point we're at right now. Only I can't 'Sit' anyone other than…Well, I can't 'Sit' Sesshomaru at any rate."

"Sit?" Sesshomaru asked with an eyebrow raised in question.

"Why should I tell you? I don't feel like talking about that right now, and you won't tell me anything." Kagome replied with a cool tone.

Sesshomaru looked unimpressed, since he could hear the barely noticeable quaver in her voice and he could smell the salt of the tears that she was holding back.

"Lord Sesshomaru, Lady Kagome! Please don't fight!" Rin pleaded when she had fully awakened and rushed over to them.

Saying both of their names like that was very foreign sounding to Sesshomaru. He wished that Rin would never say their names at the same time again.

Shippo, satisfied that Sesshomaru wouldn't hurt Kagome, jumped down next to Rin and whispered, "If Sesshomaru is anything like his half-brother, they'll be fighting constantly."

Kagome just shook her head sadly and started to pack up her things. "We had better leave." They all looked at her. "Well, shouldn't we? I have no idea because we're going, but I assume we should be trying to get there as soon as possible."

"Lord Sesshomaru, aren't we returning to your castle where Jaken is waiting?" Rin asked with a confused look on her face.

Kagome smiled. Now she knew where they were going. "Oh, so we're going to your castle? I never knew you had a castle."

"Rin, you know you aren't supposed to talk about the castle." Sesshomaru said in a displeased tone.

Rin looked ashamed. "I'm very sorry Lord Sesshomaru."

"Why are we going to your castle?" Kagome asked him.

"I don't need to tell you." Sesshomaru said defiantly.

Kagome looked irritated. "Fine, let's just go then." She had finished packing, and stood up. Sesshomaru had his usual blank expression on and simply started to walk in the direction of the castle.

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"I think we're getting closer. It reeks of wolves! It smells disgusting!" Inuyasha said. 

"I hear water. If they crossed a river or something, won't their smell be washed away?" Sango asked.

"I think we should be near the den then. If their scent is strong here, we're close by. But even if there is water, that makes it even more likely to be here. It has a strategic advantage." Miroku pointed out.

But they didn't even need to find the den, because when they reached the waterfall they saw Ginta and Hokaku who were obviously the lookouts.

"Koga, Inuyasha has found our den!" they shouted.

Koga came out from underneath the waterfall. "What are you doing here mutt-face? And where's Kagome?"

"Don't play dumb, we know you're the person Kagome left with!" Inuyasha shouted.

"Kagome left you? She must be trying to come here to be with me." Koga said with a smirk.

"Are you deaf? She left _with_ somebody! And if it wasn't you, then we're leaving!" Inuyasha informed him.

"Well I'll find her on my own! If she left you, that means she's ready to be with me." Koga told Inuyasha with a triumphant tone in his voice.

"He's very bold, but also very dense." Miroku said to Sango.

* * *

'Why does she do all those strange things at night? And what are those strange objects?' Sesshomaru wondered. 

"Girl, where are you from that has all these strange things?" Sesshomaru asked Kagome.

"First tell me why we're going to your castle. Then I'll answer your questions." Kagome told him.

"If you really want Rin to stop traveling, then just be happy. We'll be staying at the castle, so just leave it at that." Sesshomaru replied simply.

"Ooh, you did it for Rin. How sweet!" Kagome said, smiling at him.

Sesshomaru glared icily at her. "Answer my question now."

"Fine. I'm from the future. I like to bring some of the conveniences here with me." Kagome informed him. "How come you never eat anything I offer you?" Kagome stirred the Ramen she was making.

"I don't eat human food. I don't intend to start just because you're here." Sesshomaru assured her.

"Really? So do you eat raw animals like some wild uncivilized beast?" Kagome inquired.

Sesshomaru turned away from her. True, he did eat raw animals, but he wasn't uncivilized. "I'm not uncivilized. I have killed people for accusing less. Do not make the mistake of insulting me."

"It wasn't meant as an insult. But you could try some of my food. Even if you don't need to eat it, you might like it." Kagome pointed out.

"Is the food done Kagome?" Shippo asked, staring at the Ramen hungrily.

"Not yet. See Sesshomaru? Shippo is a demon and he loves human food." Kagome told him with a coaxing look.

"Fox demons are different than dog demons." Sesshomaru informed her.

"But foxes and dogs are both canines, so shouldn't they have similar eating habits?" Kagome asked innocently.

Sesshomaru glared at Shippo as if it was all his fault somehow. Shippo squealed and ran behind Kagome. Kagome started to ladle the Ramen into four cups.

"If you don't like it, then you don't have to eat it." Kagome promised Sesshomaru as she handed him the cup of noodles with a pair of chopsticks.

Sesshomaru sniffed it, as if checking to see if it was safe to eat. He picked up the chopsticks and held up a few noodles to examine. Putting the noodles in his mouth, he chewed and swallowed. He continued to eat, glaring at Kagome as if he were daring her to say "I told you so."

Kagome was too considerate to even think of gloating. She just smiled contentedly as they ate in silence.

**

* * *

End of this chapter. Hope you liked it. I want to get my other computer hardrive backed up. Otherwise, it could be a long time before I post another chapter for Growing Up. And I do want to work on that fic too. Review to tell me what you thought and to suggest ways that I might improve.**


	5. Chapter 5: Settling In

**Okay, fifth chapter. I'm trying to find some cute thing for Rin and Shippo to do. Or an inside joke they can laugh at that will perplex Kagome and Sesshomaru. Any ideas? Also, sorry to the people on my alert list, I had to post the fourth chapter a couple of times because the document would be messed up when I posted it and then previewed.**

* * *

"Kagome, I found you at last! That mutt came to my den and said you had left with someone. I knew that meant you were trying to make your way to me!" Koga told her proudly. 

Kagome had dots for eyes and a huge sweatdrop on her forehead. "Koga, I just left. I wasn't trying to go anywhere. I just wanted as far away from Inuyasha as I could get." Kagome told him.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" Sesshomaru asked, looking irritated.

"I'm Koga, leader of the wolf demon tribe. Kagome's _my_ woman. What are you doing with her?" Koga asked him, sounding angry.

Sesshomaru looked at Kagome questioningly. "I thought you liked Inuyasha. Who is this idiot then?"

Koga growled, but Kagome stepped in between him and Sesshomaru as Sesshomaru cracked his knuckles threateningly like he and his half-brother did before they got violent. "He's my friend. Don't kill him, please."

"Kagome, I can take you away from this…man and bring you back to my den." Koga told her, taking her hands and holding them in his own.

"Koga, I've told you, I don't feel that way about you. You're a good friend, and you always will be. But I'm not your woman. I don't think I want to be anybody's woman." Kagome said with a dejected tone in her voice.

"Kagome, what happened to you? Why are you sad?" Koga asked in a genuinely concerned voice.

"It's nothing anyone can help. I just…" Kagome's voice failed her as tears rolled down her cheeks.

Koga looked surprised. He wasn't used to Kagome crying. He had seen her cry over Inuyasha a few times but… "Inuyasha. He did this, didn't he?"

Kagome bit her lip and nodded. "It doesn't matter." she said wiping her eyes. She tried to change the topic quickly by asking, "Koga, what ever happened to Ayame? She wanted to marry you. And you promised to marry her."

"She's been back a few times, but I told her no. I don't think she'll give up until I'm married to her or until I have a mate to prove that I'm never going to marry her." he told her with a tone of annoyance.

"You should marry her. I can't marry you, so you need to marry someone else. Also, shouldn't you be repopulating your clan? You need a female wolf demon to do that." Kagome pointed out.

"I suppose so. But I'll always love you." Koga promised her.

"I'm sorry Koga. But you should go home and find Ayame." she told him, giving him a quick hug.

"Alright. Goodbye Kagome." Koga said before running back in the direction he had come from.

"Now you smell like that filthy wolf." Sesshomaru told her with a disgusted look on his face.

Kagome frowned. "Well then we better hope there's a hot springs or a secluded stream for me to take a bath in before we get to your castle. Otherwise I'll stink up that place too." Kagome seemed to have taken offence to his comment, and was crossing her arms and looking angry.

"My castle has bathrooms with hot baths. You can take a bath there if you wish." Sesshomaru said with a disinterested tone.

Kagome seemed to perk up. "Oh, hot baths every night? That would be heaven!"

Rin was looking at Shippo questioningly. "She loves hot baths and can't get enough of them." he informed her.

Sesshomaru looked at her strangely. He shook it off however and started to walk again. 'Why is she so strange? She told me that she came from the future, but really! I don't see how my little brother kept her with him for so long. Such a nuisance. She has no usefulness to Inuyasha. He doesn't have anyone that he needs taken care of.'

"Why are you staring at me? Do I have something on my face?" Kagome asked Sesshomaru as she began to feel around for some nonexistent spot on her face.

Sesshomaru shook his head and directed his attention forwards again. They would reach his castle early the next day. He was already questioning how his judgement had become so flawed that he would invite another human to follow him, and then bring her to his home. There was something other than his concern for Rin at work here. He just had no idea what it was.

* * *

Just as he had estimated, they had reached his castle soon after they started traveling the next morning. Kagome was in awe. 

"It's so beautiful." she said. Sesshomaru's castle was indeed impressive. Once you were inside the stone walls surrounding it, the castle was really illustrious. With its sweeping lawns and gardens and ponds, Kagome found it hard not to fall in love with it.

"Of course. You think that Sesshomaru could live in an ugly place? That environment doesn't suit me at all. I'm attractive, and so my castle shouldn't suggest otherwise." he told her with a haughty tone in his voice.

Kagome found it hard not so say, "Wow, you're really conceited, you do know that right?" She had a feeling that would not improve her position with him at all. So she instead chose to say, "Oh. Hmm."

Shippo and Rin were not wasting time looking at the castle, but were instead playing a game of tag. Kagome watched them and a warm smile began to spread itself across her face. She loved Shippo like he was her kid, but she always felt it would be too strange to call him "son" since he was also sort of one of her friends.

Sesshomaru was also watching them play, but the difference was that he had no smile on his expressionless face. She couldn't see any love in his gaze. But then again, Sesshomaru's "love" face was probably quite similar to his "hungry" face, with a striking similarity to his "happy" face. It was also remarkably like his "embarrassed" face, which coincidentally bore the resemblance of his "sad" face. It was also akin to his "confused" face, which he only brought out on the most special of occasions.

While Kagome was pondering how easy it would be to make a set of "Sesshomaru's Emotional Faces" masks, Shippo and Rin were breathing heavily on the grass. They had worn themselves out with their game of tag, and were trying to catch their breath.

"Shippo-chan, are you really a fox?" Rin asked him with a curious expression on her face.

"Yes, I'm a fox-_demon_." Shippo clarified.

"So why is your tail so poofy? Why isn't it long and sleek like a normal fox's tail?" she wondered.

Shippo looked a bit offended by this comment, although Rin didn't notice. While Shippo was trying to regain his composure, she was happy to stare at the clouds, humming a tuneless song while waiting for his answer.

But in the end, Shippo did not have his composure. "Don't make fun of me! My tail just isn't done growing yet is all!"

"I think it looks like a bunny's tail. Are you sure you aren't a bunny-demon?" Rin inquired.

"Does not! I'm telling!" Shippo said as he dashed away to find Kagome.

* * *

Kagome had hauled her bag to a pavilion in the garden, and was sitting there keeping an eye on her charges. Sesshomaru had told her to watch them until around noon, when they could come inside and he would have Jaken show Kagome and Shippo to their rooms and then to the dining room where they would eat lunch. 

She knew something was wrong when she saw Shippo look surprised and shouted something defensively at Rin. And something was definitely up when he shouted something else and started running in her direction.

Suddenly he was in her lap and telling her in a whiney voice, "Rin-chan called me a bunny-demon and made fun of my tail!"

Rin herself was following Shippo at a slower pace, and she approached them with a confused look on her face. "What's wrong Shippo-chan?"

"Shippo, I don't think Rin was being mean or making fun you. She isn't like Inuyasha. I think she was probably curious and you two just had a misunderstanding." Kagome assured him.

"But-But…I'm not a bunny." Shippo said in a small defeated voice.

"I'm sorry Shippo-chan. I was just looking at a cloud that was like a fluffy bunny and it made me think of your tail. You don't really look like a bunny." Rin promised.

"Okay." Shippo said with a sniff. He had obviously been hurt at first.

"Well, it's noon, and Sesshomaru told me and Shippo to go somewhere. Rin, do you know where the dining room is? That's where we're supposed to meet Sesshomaru." Kagome informed her.

"Yes, I know where it is. I'll see you there, okay?" Rin told them before walking into the castle. They got up and followed her inside.

**

* * *

Well, that makes six pages on Microsoft word, including this closing statement. Was that good? I'm trying to lighten it up and make it a bit more humorous. With that in mind, did I do a good job? Or were those really lame jokes that just were not funny in any way, shape, or form. Let me know. P.S. My normal PC works again, so I should update Growing Up fairly soon, now that I actually can.  
**


	6. Chapter 6: Family

**Sorry for the delay in updating. I've been reading fics instead of writing my own. Bad girl, I know. You don't have to tell me. I've also been writing my original stories which is a better excuse. Added to that, I started school last week, so that definitely cuts my time to a very small amount. Thank you to everyone who reviewed!**

(-)

Jaken was looking at them as if they were aliens or a miracle. Something that wasn't normally seen. "Why would Lord Sesshomaru bring another human with him, and to his castle no less? Why are you here woman?" he demanded of Kagome.

"Sesshomaru invited me to take care of Rin." Kagome said stiffly. She had never liked Jaken, and she didn't see that changing anytime soon.

"I take care of Rin. I'm the one who listens to the majority of her childish chatter, I'm the one who-" Jaken started.

"-leaves her to find her own food?" Kagome finished.

"Children her age are expected to fend for themselves." Jaken replied.

"You say it like it's so simple. Human children aren't expected to provide for themselves until far past Rin's age. She isn't a demon." Kagome reminded him. Shippo could provide for himself, but he was a demon.

"Nevermind. Here are the rooms that Lord Sesshomaru has said you are to sleep in. Put your things in them and change into something more decent than that ungodly short kimono." Jaken instructed Kagome. "I'll be waiting to lead you to dinner, so hurry up."

Kagome glared at him and walked into her room, closing the door behind her. Shippo jumped out of her arms and began sniffing around. There were three doors, including the one they had just come through. Shippo pulled one to the left open and said, "Hey, there's a little room for me, right next to yours!"

"That's good. If you get scared or lonely in the night, you won't have any trouble finding me!" Kagome replied with a smile.

While Shippo was exploring his own room, Kagome was looking around hers. There was a very soft looking futon in the corner, and a wardrobe that Kagome assumed would be the place to put her clothes. There was a desk next to the door to Shippo's room, with a few scrolls, which Kagome assumed she would be allowed to read. In the corner next to the last door was a changing screen. Going to check the last door, she saw that it was a bathroom.

'Hot baths! Heaven!' Kagome thought, overjoyed. She pushed that thought out of her mind for the moment. She walked over to the wardrobe to put the few outfits she had brought inside, but when she opened the door, it was already full of outfits from this era. Looking puzzled, she set down her bag next to the wardrobe and pulled out a yellow kimono. It wasn't as big and dragging as the kimonos that the lady of a castle would wear, it was more like a light silk traveling kimono (A\N: Like the kind Fuu on Samurai Champloo wears. I had no clue how to describe that.). Kagome decided to wear the yellow one to dinner, so she closed the wardrobe and took it behind the changing screen.

Shippo came in before she was done and asked, "Are you ready Kagome?"

"Just a sec." Kagome replied, tying her obi (A\N: Am I right in thinking that's the tying thingy on a kimono?).

She came out from behind the screen and Shippo said, "Wow Kagome, you sure do look a lot different in that!"

"I guess so. Come on, I don't want Jaken getting impatient and coming in here." Kagome responded as she picked him up and walked over to the door and opened it.

"About time." Jaken said irritably.

"Shut up you little toad before I lose my temper! You're so rude!" Kagome snapped at him. Shippo smirked from Kagome's arms.

(-)

In the dining room, Sesshomaru was having a rare conversation with Rin. He changed into a blue kimono (A\N: Work with me, Japanese clothing names really screw me up.) that made him look the regal position of lord of a castle. "Rin, what do you think of Kagome?" he asked her.

"I'm glad Kagome came with us. And Shippo-chan too!" Rin answered in her normal cheerful voice.

Sesshomaru decided to end it there since he could hear Jaken approaching guiding Kagome. He couldn't hear the little kitsune's footsteps, so he assumed Kagome must have been carrying him. Sure enough, when the door slid open, the fox-demon cub was sitting in Kagome's arms. Kagome herself was wearing a yellow silk kimono from her wardrobe. Sesshomaru noticed how well it showed off her curves before he realized what he was doing.

'Wait just one minute! I, Lord of the Western Lands, did _not_ just think of a silly human girl as being in anyway attractive…did I?' he wondered. Mentally shaking his head, he saw Kagome sit down and set her kit beside her.

Meanwhile, Kagome noticed Sesshomaru staring. 'Don't tell me I have something on my face again! We haven't even started eating! There's no food on the table yet!'

"Shippo!" Kagome hissed to him. "Do I have something on my face?" Shippo shook his head no and she whispered, "Are you sure?" This time he nodded his head yes. Kagome sighed and gave Sesshomaru a weird glance out of the corner of her eye. He moved his gaze elsewhere, but not quick enough to make her think that his interest in her had been anything more than casual.

Dinner was a quiet affair, as Kagome assumed it always would be as long as you were eating with Sesshomaru. After dinner, she, Shippo, and Rin went to her room to play.

"I'm not going to be the baby!" Shippo insisted.

"But I'm the mommy so there has to be a baby!" Rin told him.

"Okay, you two, if it'll make you happy, I'll be the baby!" Kagome said with a giggle.

"Well then I'll be the big brother!" Shippo volunteered.

"Okay, now I'm going to wake up and take care of the baby." Rin said. She mimed waking up and went over to Kagome who was lying down on the futon. Kagome pretended to be asleep and Rin gently shook her saying, "Baby, wake up."

Kagome did a good job of making little baby protest sounds. Rin kept insisting that she get up and she opened her eyes and pretended to be sleepy.

"It's time for breakfast baby." Rin said. She led Kagome (since she couldn't carry her) over to the desk and made her sit down in front of it. She went back to wake up Shippo, who was also pretending to be asleep on the futon. "Wake up big brother. Time to get up." she told him, poking and pushing him.

"I don't wanna get up. Just a little while longer." Shippo replied in a sleepy voice.

"You have to get up and eat!" Rin insisted, dragging him off the bed.

"Fine, fine." Shippo said with a loud fake yawn.

They both walked back over to Kagome and pretended to eat. Then Rin said, "It's time to do your chores big brother."

"I'm going." Shippo assured her as he walked over to in front of the wardrobe and mimed doing chores like chopping firewood and getting water.

"Now we-" Rin started before they all heard Kagome's door slide open.

They all froze and looked at the door. Sesshomaru was standing there looking slightly displeased. "What on earth are you doing?" he asked condescendingly.

"We're playing house." Kagome told him. "Do you want to play? You could be the daddy."

Sesshomaru asked, "Who has time for such childish games?"

"Children. And the people who care for them." Kagome replied in a kindly voice.

"Hmph. I just stopped by to say that if you like baths so much, you should take one with Rin before you put her to bed." Sesshomaru told her.

"Don't worry, we'll bathe before we go to sleep." Kagome assured him. It seemed strange to be the babysitter or nanny for the child of the great and powerful Lord of the West. Nevertheless, Kagome felt at peace there. She felt like she belonged there.

Sesshomaru turned and left, sliding the door shut behind him. For some reason, they all started giggling as soon as he closed the door. They continued their game of house until Kagome told them, "Bath time Rin! Shippo, you can take your bath after we take ours. Until then how about you play in your room?"

"Okay." Rin and Shippo responded simultaneously.

"I'm going to get a clean kimono. Be right back Lady Kagome!" Rin added cheerfully as she ran to the door and out into the hallway.

"I'm going to practice fighting and shape shifting in my room. Let me know when you two are done." Shippo requested.

No sooner had he slid the door to his room shut than she heard another door slide open. Rin was grinning and holding a yellow kimono.

They went into the bathroom and got undressed. Kagome had brought her soap and shampoo, so she and Rin started to wash.

"Lady Kagome. How do you feel about Lord Sesshomaru?" Rin asked innocently.

Kagome paused in the middle of scrubbing her own hair. "He's okay I guess. I suppose I imagined him to be a little more mean and cruel than he actually is." She rinsed out the shampoo and began to wash her body. Rin was just finishing washing her body.

"How do I use this?" Rin asked curiously, holding up the bottle of shampoo. Kagome finished scrubbing her foot and looked over to see what she was talking about.

"Here, I'll help you. If you don't do it right, it gets in your eyes and stings." Kagome told her, taking the bottle from Rin and putting a reasonable amount of shampoo on her hand. She started working it into Rin's hair and scalp.

Rin was enjoying it. She was still wondering though. "But do you like him? You don't seem to get along very well."

Kagome laughed. "Neither did I and Inuyasha." She paused for a moment, as her heart constricted painfully. She tried not to show it. "Anyway, I don't think that I'm going to get used to Sesshomaru in this small amount of time."

"I was just thinking how nice it would be to have a whole family again. With a mommy and daddy and a little brother." Rin told her.

Kagome promptly choked on absolutely nothing. "I'm not sure I would go so far as to say anything near that much, but we can still be family. Just not so much the daddy part. Sesshomaru can't be that compassionate and caring towards you yet, so he wouldn't make a good father figure."

She finished with Rin's hair, and rinsed it thoroughly. Then they climbed into the water. "Ahh, noting beats a hot bath."

"I'm not used to taking hot baths. It hurts!" Rin said, shifting uncomfortably in the water.

"You should really get used to it. It's really wonderful once you do." Kagome assured her.

Rin laid back and tried to relax, but she found it to be incredibly hard. Jumping out she said, "I can't! It's just too hot!"

Kagome smiled consolingly. "Okay, we'll get out. I won't make you take a hot bath every night, just often enough to keep you clean." she promised. She climbed out of the tub and grabbed a towel. After she and Rin were dry, Kagome pulled the yellow kimono on again, and helped Rin into her yellow kimono.

They walked out of the bathroom and Kagome watched Rin walk to the door to the hallway. Sliding it open and smiling, Rin said, "Good night Lady Kagome! I'll see you tomorrow!"

" 'Nite!" Kagome called back.

Shippo's door slid open and he said, "Done? I'm getting in then. I'll try not to wake you when I'm done."

"Thanks. Sleep tight Shippo." Kagome replied with a yawn. She snuggled under the blankets of her futon and went to sleep.

(-)

**Well, chapter is done. Took me long enough, didn't it? I suppose I'll try to work on my other fics some more too.**


	7. Chapter 7: Realization of Power

**This chapter here has been taking me forever to write. I have a lot of distractions here at home, not to mention the mountains of homework and activities to distract me at school. And the time I do have is spent sitting in front of my computer trying to overcome writer's block. Or trying to defeat the wind dragon and one of my justified elf ex-friends. But I don't wanna! I know I chose the wrong side. But I'll not get into that.**

**That was written a pretty long time ago. The wind dragon and Gil are long gone. I had to kill the old wheezer who was actually the fire dragon too. But I'll stop talking about my video game and back to my fic. I'm hoping the updates will start to improve in my non-AU fics. I got episodes 1-54 for Christmas, and while watching the Sesshomaru and Naraku Join Forces episode, I was suddenly able to continue this. So maybe I'll be better at updating sooner from now on. We can only hope. (Plus my ADD isn't so great lately either.)**

(-)

The next morning Kagome woke up feeling rested and optimistic. She should talk to Sesshomaru today about Rin. He needed to know how much that girl adored him and looked up to him. If he didn't already know. Kagome wasn't sure how he could miss it, but she had a deep suspicion that he hadn't been paying much attention to Rin. Kagome wasn't sure how to make him pay attention to Rin or herself.

She had gotten up a little early on purpose, so she could speak to Sesshomaru without anyone else being around. Kagome climbed out of bed and went to the wardrobe. She decided on a forest green kimono and went behind the screen to change. Knowing that the chances of someone else being up this early and coming to see her were very slim, she didn't hurry quite as much as she had the night before when Jaken had been waiting.

After she was dressed, she pulled her hair into a ponytail and quietly slid open her room's door and tiptoed down the hallway to look for Sesshomaru. She was surprised to see him sitting in what looked like a study with the door slid open. As if he sensed her watching (which he probably did, Kagome reminded herself) he looked up and made eye contact.

"Good morning Sesshomaru. I wanted to talk with you about something." Kagome told him straight away.

"What is it?" he asked her in a casual manner. But inside he was confused.

'What if she asks why I've been looking at her? I don't even know that. Wait, why should I have to answer her at all? She's just a puny human, and I'm not obliged to answer her if she does ask.' Sesshomaru decided, regaining his composure. (A/n: Yeah, forgive the OOC moment.)

Kagome could almost swear that she had seen a frown of concern momentarily cross Sesshomaru's face, but she quickly shrugged off the thought as ridiculous.

"I wanted to talk about Rin." Kagome told him, getting straight to the point.

"Oh. What about Rin?" Sesshomaru asked, almost looking irritated.

'What was he expecting me to ask?' Kagome wondered to herself.

"Well, you and I need to discuss what I will be teaching Rin, since she should be educated. We also need to talk about how she should be raised and what is being planned for her future." Kagome informed him.

"Why should she need an education? Few women do anything that requires more than basic knowledge and common sense." Sesshomaru attested.

"See, while that is still the logic, women will never get treated-ugh, this is pointless. Nevermind." she replied with an angry sigh.

"I'm sure whatever it was useless to begin with anyway." Sesshomaru said dismissively.

"See, now do you disrespect me because I'm a woman or because I'm a human?" Kagome questioned him seriously.

"You're a human woman. You can't get much worse than that now can you?" Sesshomaru said, using a dry sense of humor.

'Wait just one minute! Did the expressionless emotionless Sesshomaru just attempt to make a joke?! That's weird! It's so unlike him to display even the most basic of emotions, let alone humor. What's changed?' Kagome wondered, wearing a dumbfounded look on her face.

"Has your simple mind been overloaded?" Sesshomaru asked with his eyebrow raised.

"Wha-No!! Why do you talk to me like I'm dirt?!?!" Kagome demanded.

"You have done nothing to make me think otherwise." Sesshomaru replied simply.

"But I-Nevermind. I suppose I'll just have to show you my value then." Kagome said resolutely. She turned and walked out of the room and went back to her room, where Shippo was just coming through the door from his room.

"Where did you go?" he asked, tilting his head and looking at her inquisitively.

"I just had a talk with Sesshomaru and I've decided that I'm going to try and show my value so he'll stop dismissing me as nothing or trying to make me feel like I'm worthless. I'll show him that I'm not weak and I'm not going to be ignored anymore." Kagome told him. She was fuming and she had a determined gleam in her eye.

"Okay Kagome." Shippo said in a shaky voice as he slowly backed away. Kagome always terrified him when she was angry.

(-)

Sesshomaru felt a chill go up his spine. It was unusual for that to happen to such a powerful demon as himself, and in the rare instances where it did happen, there was someone very powerful nearby, giving off waves of power. He was deeply attuned to those sorts of things, with inu-demon senses that helped him watch over his lands, so he could discern that it was a holy power of a great magnitude.

'The girl.' his instincts told him. He walked out of his study and walked down the hall to her room until he got a good sniff of her scent. Then he followed the trail into the garden that the fox and Rin had played in on the day the girl and the fox arrived. Past the pavilion, by the edge of the forest, the miko girl stood in her green kimono, aiming an arrow at a tree. A human would have most likely missed her, since her kimono was a special one, designed to blend with the background of her surroundings.

The girl let the arrow fly at the tree she had marked with a target. She missed the bull's eye, but there was no missing the incredible force of spiritual energy that came off of her arrow and hit him almost like a physical blow, making him stumble backwards slightly.

A growl came from deep in his throat. He had no idea the wench was so damned powerful! Who did she think she was, hurting him like that?! He could stand a lot of physical pain and torture. But her purifying arrow caused him a different kind of pain. It penetrated his very bones, and gave a very deep-seated feeling of intense pain.

"Wench!" he growled loudly.

Kagome turned and looked. Sesshomaru was nearby, looking angry and uncomfortable. Well too bad for him! She was mad too. She marched up to him and said, "Hey, my name's not wench. It's not wench or woman or girl or any other name you think up. It's Kagome. My name is Kagome!"

The anger in her face lessened when she saw that his eyes had red slowly bleeding into them, showing the internal fight he was waging to keep his instincts from making him kill her where she stood. He was starting to breath heavily and there were even a few beads of sweat starting to form on the surface of his beautiful skin.

'Did I just think of Sesshomaru as beautiful? Nevermind, there's obviously something major happening to him.' Kagome thought, examining the pained expression he wore.

"Are you okay?" Kagome asked him carefully, aware that one wrong move and everything would be over. "It's okay, nothing's going to hurt you." she assured him in a soothing voice.

He eyed her warily. Kagome knew that he was still dangerous, like a cornered dog with no where to go, and nothing to do but lash out at anything that seemed like a threat. Recalling a piece of advice Kaede had given about using her miko powers when Inuyasha was fully transformed to calm him down. She took a deep breath and let it out. Then she tried to force all thought from her mind except calm. She let the calm flow into her aura and tried to bathe him in the calm.

Sesshomaru felt his rage ebbing away slowly. He was regaining control of his actions. When precisely had he lost that control? The gir-Kagome was soothing his demon blood into a dormant state. Now as her spiritual power washed over him, it gently eased his pain and replaced it with a peaceful contentedness. It was a strange feeling. A human woman was causing this wonderful feeling of serenity within him. It seemed impossible.

Sesshomaru felt her pat his arm and look up at him with a questioning look on her face. Her touch was gently and caring, and he had no desire to hurt her or even for her to remove her hand. In fact, he felt sure that he would be disappointed if she did. This sudden need for and dependency on a human woman shook him.

'It's just a momentary lapse in judgement caused by her powers weakening me. I am just not in my right mind.' Sesshomaru tried to assure himself.

"What was that Sesshomaru?" Kagome asked him quietly.

"It was my youkai instincts reacting to the waves of spiritual energy you were giving off. Which was very painful for your information. You should guard your emotions so you don't cause disturbances like this one. By leaving your spiritual energy that you release unchecked, you acted as a homing beacon, calling the strongest demons to come and kill you. And unless you can harness your spiritual abilities to their full extent, or very close to it, powerful demons will inevitably seek you out and attempt to end your existence." Sesshomaru explained.

'Wow. He really knows his stuff. But living for hundreds of years would leave some knowledge doubtlessly. And I didn't hear him put me down once during that explanation.' Kagome thought with wonder.

"We'll discuss this later. I'm going to go back to my study and get some work done. I will see you at dinner." Sesshomaru told her.

"Um, okay. See ya later." Kagome said, still feeling unnerved.

'That was weird. He was still distant like he usually is, but I could almost have said he was acting nicer towards me. Maybe I've proved my value…or at least my power to him already.' Kagome thought.

(-)

**DONE, IT'S FINALLY DONE! Sure took me long enough, right? I apologize again for the one OOC moment for Sesshomaru, it kind of happened and then I just decided to leave it as it was. In fact, a bit of the last part of the chapter seems odd for Sesshomaru. But it's done, so I'm leaving it like that.**


	8. Chapter 8: Poison Drool

**People seem to be visiting my fic a bit less. Of course, that's my own damn fault for taking so long to update. But I'm also ADD and have about five other fics (not all posted, and not all posted on this account) going, so my attention has been divided.**

(-)

Dinner felt strange that night. Sesshomaru, Kagome, Shippo, and Rin all sat around the table and looked at each other, wondering who would break the silence.

Feeling the awkward silence needed to be broken, Kagome voiced something she had been wondering for a long time. "Sesshomaru, you have poison claws, but is your drool poisonous?"

"What?" Sesshomaru asked, sounding slightly offended.

"I've always wondered, ever since you and Inuyasha fought over Tetsusaiga in your father's tomb. When you transformed, your dog drool melted all the skeletons on the floor and made poisonous gas. So I had wondered if your drool was poisonous. It would mean that anyone you spit on or…kissed-" Kagome stopped there, seeing the look Sesshomaru was giving her, and also finding hard to imagine him kissing anyone.

"…I think you are presuming too much by asking me this here. We shall talk later, after you put Rin and the fox to bed." Sesshomaru stated calmly.

'So I'll actually get an answer? Wow, maybe I _did_ impress him this afternoon.' Kagome thought.

"Hey, Shippo has a name. You should at least call him by his name, even if you have nothing else to do with him." Kagome told Sesshomaru, looking irritated.

"…Shippo." Sesshomaru tried out the name.

Kagome smiled. "See, courtesy isn't so hard."

Sesshomaru felt so strange. Happiness for him only comes when killing something in an especially satisfying way. But her smile would give him that without bloodshed. It didn't make sense! Only Rin could do that, and that was only when he was in a very good mood (which tended to be brought on by a particularly gruesome kill). She had to be manipulating him somehow. Anyway, whatever the reason or the method, she was somehow doing this. Which meant his only answer would be with her. And he intended to find out what she was doing.

(-)

Kagome walked to Sesshomaru's study after putting Rin and Shippo to bed. When she slid the door open, she noticed how dark it was inside.

"Sesshomaru?" Kagome called nervously.

"I can smell your fear." his voice replied from the dark.

"What's going on? Why is it so dark? I thought you wanted to talk to me." Kagome said edging into the dark room, perhaps unwisely.

The door slid shut behind her. She turned around and saw red eyes staring at her through the darkness.

His demon side… Kagome thought fearfully. She tried to use her aura to calm him, but he resisted.

"No. I'm completely in control of myself. I'm just playing with my prey. It tends to make them more honest. What are you doing to me?" Sesshomaru asked her.

"Me doing to you? That's my question! I don't recall being told that you were going to hunt me in the dark to kill me! I thought you wanted to talk to me, not use scare tactics!" Kagome shouted, her anger rising.

Suddenly he was holding her arms and his red eyes were very close to her face. He appeared to be studying her intently.

"Why do you make me feel this way?" Sesshomaru demanded, now pulling her very close to himself.

"W-what w-way?" Kagome asked, nervous from the close proximity to this seemingly irritated demon.

"Happy. Lightheaded. What spell have you cast, what charm have you used to make me feel so…" Sesshomaru searched for a word that wouldn't give the girl any ideas.

"Wait, I make you happy?" Kagome wondered. She now sounded embarrassed instead of afraid. "Um…it kind of sounds like you're attracted to me."

"This Sesshomaru would never be attracted to a human." he insisted stubbornly.

"But from what you said and the things you've done, it's becoming clear that you are." Kagome told him.

'I like her? I do. How could she have discovered this before me?! I, who am more self aware then any living being on the planet?!' Sesshomaru wondered.

"It's okay if you are. That doesn't mean anything in itself. You obviously don't have to like me to be attracted to me, right?" Kagome asked, seeming almost hopeful that he would deny her statement.

Sesshomaru just frowned and looked at her. The lights raised. She could see his red eyes lessening, his mouth becoming less canine.

"In anycase, my saliva is only poisonous when I'm fully transformed." Sesshomaru informed her. He let go of her and retreated a few paces.

"What else can you tell me about inu youkai?" Kagome asked.

"What do you want to know?" Sesshomaru countered.

"Well, do they have all the characteristics of dogs? I know family can't be desperately important to you…" Kagome trailed off thoughtfully.

"Our family is unique in that aspect. Most inu families are very close. Ours just had these problems since my father mated himself to that human wh-" Sesshomaru stopped himself, considering his recent realization that he was attracted to a human female himself.

Kagome narrowed her eyes and raised one eyebrow skeptically. "Anyway. So he mated Inuyasha's mother. I thought they just…I didn't know that humans could mate with demons." Kagome told him.

"I have no desire to discuss my mating rituals with you at this time." Sesshomaru replied dismissively. There were implications behind his words that made Kagome feel a thrill of fear. "Anyway, I think you should be getting to bed before it gets too late."

"Okay Mom." Kagome said jokingly.

Sesshomaru had such a comically confused look on his face that Kagome couldn't help but laugh. "Stop laughing and tell this Sesshomaru what you mean. I am not your mother, I'm not even a wo-Stop laughing!" Sesshomaru shouted, and the few feet of breathing room he had given her evaporated as he closed the distance between them in half a heartbeat. He reclaimed her arms and this time shoved her up against the wall.

Kagome wasn't laughing anymore. "Ughn, it's just that your face had a funny look on it. And I was implying that you were acting like my mother because you were telling me I shouldn't be staying up late. I really didn't mean anything by it. In my time, little jokes like that get said all the time."

Sesshomaru eyed her skeptically for a few moments before releasing her. "Very well. But do not laugh at this Sesshomaru again. You presume to put yourself above your status by doing so." he told her.

"Um, okay. Goodnight. Sweet dreams." Kagome wished him as she left.

Sesshomaru couldn't help but wonder if now his sweet dreams would be the ones including her.

(-)

**Well that wasn't up to my five page standard for myself, but it was the point it naturally ended at. Sorry everything is being updated so slowly, but my original stories are taking up much of my writing attention.**


	9. Chapter 9: An Invitation

**Got my first flame on any story. It was incredibly dumb. I lmao at it. Flames always make for good entertainment. Sorry for the huge waits, I've lacked inspiration. And I once again got inspiration when I watched the ****Naraku and Sesshomaru Join Forces**** episode. Hope this chapter satisfies.**

(-)

"Inuyasha, you have no idea where we're going, do you?" Sango accused.

"No, okay! I don't know where Kagome is, and we don't even know who's with her!" Inuyasha shouted with frustration. It had been four days with no trace of Kagome. Inuyasha was getting worried. Her trail would be cold, if it wasn't already.

"Well, let's think. Who else do we know that it would be surprising for Kagome to leave with? Not Naraku, he's dead. Come to think of it, most of the demons we've encountered are dead. She said her new companion was strong and able to protect her. And she said that Shippo was the reason her companion asked her to stay with him. What conclusion does this lead us to?" Miroku asked.

"I can only think of Sesshomaru. He's one of the only strong demons that we know that we haven't killed. But what about Shippo? …Perhaps Sesshomaru wanted Kagome to take care of Rin like he's seen her do for Shippo!" Sango suggested.

"Sesshomaru! That bastard would as soon kill her as look at her." Inuyasha said dismissively.

"Ah, but that was back before he met Rin. Don't you think that now that he's become attached to little Rin, he might be slightly more human friendly?" Miroku reasoned.

"He at least wouldn't kill Kagome in front of Rin. So it's safe to assume she's alive." Sango pointed out.

"If Sesshomaru has her, who knows what will happen when he loses his temper?! That annoying wench is bound to make him blow! We've got to save Kagome before he kills her!" Inuyasha said.

(-)

"Message for you Lord Sesshomaru!" Jaken called.

"Bring in the messenger." Sesshomaru said from his study.

Jaken led the water sprite in. The sprite handed a scroll to Sesshomaru to read. Sesshomaru quickly read it and said, "So the Elemental Lord has decided to call upon me to visit him?"

"Yes Lord. My master wishes to discuss peace and an alliance with you, but he would prefer to do it in person. He cannot leave his domain for long, and he knows that you travel frequently, so he requests that you visit him at the Palace of the Elements hidden in the Toshi mountains." the water sprite said.

Sesshomaru made a thoughtful noise. "Tell your Lord that I will come to call soon. I will bring a few companions."

"Yes Lord Sesshomaru." the sprite said, and with a quick bow, he turned to leave. Only to find Kagome passing in the hallway. "A human?!"

Kagome was startled to see someone else in the castle besides Sesshomaru, the children, herself, and Jaken. "Who are you?" she asked the sprite.

Not replying to her, the sprite turned to Sesshomaru and said, "I had heard that you had a human pet, but I didn't believe the rumors."

Rin and Shippo now came to follow Kagome, and they also stopped short to see a visitor. "Two humans? And a fox?" the messenger inquired.

"I am not a pet!" Kagome protested, glaring at the sprite.

Sesshomaru too was giving the sprite an icy look. "These are my companions. They will join me at the Palace or else I will not be going."

"Very well Lord Sesshomaru. I will give word to my master to expect four." the sprite said before bowing again and moving past Kagome and the children to leave.

Kagome and the children entered Sesshomaru's study. "What was that about?" Kagome asked.

"That was a message asking me to journey to the Palace of the Elements. You will accompany me." Sesshomaru said.

"Given his reaction, I'm not sure we'll be welcome." Kagome fretted.

"No one will dare go against me." Sesshomaru said simply.

"So you're saying no one will touch us because you scare the living daylights out of everyone, right?" Kagome asked, rolling her eyes.

"Correct." Sesshomaru said.

"Great. When do we leave?" Kagome asked.

"In an hour. Please pack a few kimonos for yourself and Rin." Sesshomaru instructed.

"So soon?" Kagome wondered.

"Better to leave now. Please go get ready, I have things to discuss with Jaken." Sesshomaru asked politely.

Kagome nodded and took Shippo and Rin out of the room. She was curious about their discussion, but knew better than to ask. "Okay, Rin, go get three kimonos and then bring them here. Shippo can help me pick three for myself."

Entering her own room, Kagome went and opened the wardrobe. She emptied out her bag and put her things on the desk. Then she looked at her choices. "What do you think Shippo?"

"Well, he said we're going to a palace, right? So I would pick the prettiest ones." Shippo said.

"Okay, then I'll take the cherry red, the bright green, and the black one with the…dog demons." Kagome said, examining the design of the back of the black kimono.

"That must be Sesshomaru's mother and father." Shippo guessed.

"I'm back! And I brought my best three kimonos." Rin said, appearing with her arms full. She presented them to Kagome, who took them, folded them, and stored them away in her bag.

After packing her own kimonos, Kagome took her bag and returned to Sesshomaru's study. From behind the closed door, Kagome managed to catch Sesshomaru saying, "Have the castle ready when we return."

There was an odd pause in the conversation until Sesshomaru said, "No need to hide behind doors Kagome."

Kagome slid the door open and entered, blushing. "Sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop."

"It's fine. Are you ready to go?" Sesshomaru asked.

"Yes." Kagome replied.

"Then let's go get Ah and Un so we can leave." Sesshomaru said.

"Ah and Un?" Kagome wondered.

"My two headed dragon." Sesshomaru explained.

"Wow." Kagome said.

"Yay, I get to ride Ah and Un! That's what I miss about traveling the most Lord Sesshomaru." Rin told him.

"Not so loud Rin. Let's go." Sesshomaru said.

(-)

**Done! Took me forever, right? Hopefully not so long for the next one, because I have an idea of where this is going now.**


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